Saturday 14 March 2015

A portion of the Hubble Space Telescope Case For The iPad Mini

Here's a great iPad case from Zazzle featuring a Hubble-related design. Maybe you'd like to see your name on it? Click to personalize and see what it's like!


tagged with: sts-125, artificial satellites, earth, horizon, windows, spacecraft, view from space, space, outdoors, photography, horizontal, technology, research, observatory, space telescope, hubble space telescope, hubble, components, logistics, outer space, space exploration

A portion of the Hubble Space Telescope locked down in the cargo bay of Space Shuttle Atlantis featured with STS-125.

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Hubble Space Telescope iPad Mini Cases

Here's a great iPad case from Zazzle featuring a Hubble-related design. Maybe you'd like to see your name on it? Click to personalize and see what it's like!


tagged with: hubble, telescope, image, space, astronomy, explore, nasa, universe

My favorite NASA image on your iPad.

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Black phosphorus is new ‘wonder material’ for improving optical communication

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Phosphorus, a highly reactive element commonly found in match heads, tracer bullets, and fertilizers, can be turned into

The post Black phosphorus is new ‘wonder material’ for improving optical communication has been published on Technology Org.

 
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How to beat a polygraph

Science Focus

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Judging by Doug Williams' business website, it doesn't look like he thought he had anything to hide. On Polygraph.com, Williams, a former officer with the Oklahoma City Police Department turned anti-polygraph activist, promises to teach you how to prepare for (read: beat) a polygraph test — through his how-to manual, DVD, and personal training sessions. He frames his pitch as selling to a very nervous truth-teller, rather than to a liar, writing on his site: "Remember, just telling the truth only works about 50 percent of the time — so to protect yourself from being falsely accused of lying, you must learn how to pass!"

Nevertheless, a grand jury in Oklahoma decided that there is enough evidence that Williams is doing more harm than helping innocent people calm their nerves. In November, Williams was charged with multiple counts of mail fraud and witness tampering, for allegedly showing people how to lie and hide crimes in order to get security-clearance-level jobs with the federal government. Williams calls the charges against him an "attack on his First Amendment rights," and says that he's only being targeted because he is a vocal critic of a method that is "no more accurate than the toss of a coin in determining whether a person is telling the truth or lying."

On the accuracy aspect at least, he's got a point. In United States v. Scheffer, in 1989, the Supreme Court ruled that a judge could reject polygraph results in criminal cases, citing a general lack of scientific consensus as to their reliability. Many state and federal courts now consider them inadmissible as evidence. But it's a decision that's still up to individual judges. And even in places where polygraph tests may not be admissible in court, some branches of law enforcement still believe that they have other, non-prosecutorial value.

For instance, studies have shown that a polygraph can have a kind of placebo effect — that it can elicit new information from people who hadn't been fully cooperating before, who now feel that they have no choice but to come clean. In a majority of jurisdictions, cops and parole officers also use regular polygraph tests to keep post-conviction sex offenders accountable for their actions; researchers have suggested that the process alone discourages recidivism, whether or not the results are 100 percent accurate. (Other researchers disagree.)

But aside from those legal uses, it was the job-screening use of the polygraph that likely sparked federal prosecutors' interest in Williams' case. Last year, McClatchy reported on an unprecedented secret federal investigation of other polygraph instructors like Williams; Chad Dixon was sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to similar charges. Marisa Taylor and Cleve R. Wootson Jr. wrote, "The criminal inquiry, which hasn't been acknowledged publicly, is aimed at discouraging criminals and spies from infiltrating the U.S. government by using the polygraph-beating techniques."

It's probably worth remembering that news of the investigation came out in September 2013, after the "Summer of Snowden," a series of revelations that set the entire government reeling. A former National Security Agency employee, Russell Tice, told U.S. News & World Report that the agency regularly subjects its agents to polygraph tests, but that he and his colleagues had figured out how to pass every time. (Tips include biting your tongue to spike the sensors' output, and then visualizing cool beers on warm summer nights to reduce them.)

In their article for McClatchy, Taylor and Wootson also described the polygraph-prep instructors' methods, "which are said to include controlled breathing, muscle tensing, tongue biting, and mental arithmetic." The overall goal of the preparation process is to teach people to control the otherwise involuntary physical stress responses that the polygraph's sensors pick up on during the interview. Or, as Williams himself summed up quite simply in a recent tweet: "The polygraph operator monitors your respiration, GSR, & cardio. Get nervous on the wrong question & he calls you a liar!"

Many criminologists now believe that "getting nervous" shouldn't indicate a guilty conscience, and that consistent story-telling is a much better indicator of the truth. Psychologists are currently testing new techniques that "induce cognitive load" as potentially more accurate ways to weed out the lies. It takes more brainpower to keep an invented story consistent than it does to tell the truth, the theory goes. So interrogators can try to overwhelm their subjects with information, questions, and tasks, and see how flustered they get.

One review of the research explores methods like having the person draw the scene being described, tell the story in reverse-chronological order, describe the scene in detail from the perspective of a different physical vantage point, and even complete math problems in the middle of the interview. Even being made to maintain constant eye contact occupies the mind, so that can also make it more difficult for a liar to stay on message.

It's hard to say which interrogation method is harder for a liar to beat — manipulating subtle physiological blips, or keeping a complicated story straight while looking the examiner right in the eye and doing long division at the same time. But maybe it's also worth trying the simple, natural, low-tech option that's always been a recourse for liars everywhere: mock surprise. According to Doug Williams' indictment, one undercover agent apparently asked him what to do during the polygraph if he was asked about whether he had had any polygraph training. As in, should he lie about that? Williams apparently responded, "Look at them with an astounded look on your face…reverse it on him."

Pacific Standard grapples with the nation's biggest issues by illuminating why we do what we do. For more on the science of society, sign up for its weekly email update or subscribe to its bimonthly print magazine.

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 » see original post http://theweek.com/articles/441711/how-beat-polygraph
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Solar Impulse 2 starts around-the-world flight

Science Focus

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The first attempt to send a solar-powered aircraft around the world started at 3:12am UTC in the United Arab Emirates. The Solar Impulse 2 aircraft took off from an airport in the UAE for a 400 km flight down the coast of the Persian Gulf, with Oman being its intended destination. Due to the craft's low airspeed, that will take it roughly 12 hours, meaning it won't require much from the on-board batteries that can help keep the plane traveling 24 hours a day.

The flight is the first leg in a series of flights that will last most of the year. Many of the initial flights will be relatively short as it moves across Asia to China via stops in India and Myanmar. The biggest challenges there will likely involve the logistics of moving the aircraft's support crews to each location. From China, however, things get challenging, as the next stop is Hawaii—roughly 9,500 km distant. After three stops within the continental US, the craft will also cross the Atlantic to Europe.

This will put the aircraft and its pilots, André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard, to a rather significant test, given the slow speed of forward progress generated by the craft's electric engines. The huge size of Solar Impulse 2—its wingspan is bigger than a 747's—is primarily to support carrying food, expanded batteries, oxygen and toilet systems, as well as the space required to let the pilot lie down and sleep.

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 » see original post http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/science/~3/TGnG8YdvZVQ/
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Strings attached to future high temperature superconductivity

Science Focus

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The behaviour of strongly correlated electron systems, such as high-temperature superconductors, defies explanation in the language of ordinary

The post Strings attached to future high temperature superconductivity has been published on Technology Org.

 
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 » see original post http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TechnologyOrgPhysicsNews/~3/KpeCd3A6dSs/
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Return at Sunrise

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Thursday, shortly after local sunrise over central Asia, this Soyuz spacecraft floated over a sea of golden clouds during its descent by parachute through planet Earth's dense atmosphere. On board were Expedition 42 commander Barry Wilmore of NASA and Alexander Samokutyaev and Elena Serova of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos). Touch down was at approximately 10:07 p.m. EDT (8:07 a.m. March 12, Kazakh time) southeast of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan. The three were returning from low Earth orbit, after almost six months on the International Space Station as members of the Expedition 41 and Expedition 42 crews.
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Orion Nebula by the Hubble Telescope Cover For The iPad Mini

Here's a great iPad case from Zazzle featuring a Hubble-related design. Maybe you'd like to see your name on it? Click to personalize and see what it's like!


tagged with: orion, nebula, hubble, space, astronomy

In one of the most detailed astronomical images ever produced, NASA/ESA&#39;s Hubble Space Telescope captured an unprecedented look at the Orion Nebula. ... This extensive study took 105 Hubble orbits to complete. All imaging instruments aboard the telescope were used simultaneously to study Orion. The Advanced Camera mosaic covers approximately the apparent angular size of the full moon. Sign up to Mr. Rebates for FREE and save 12% on any zazzle order in addition to a $5.00 sign up bonus All Rights Reserved; without: prejudice, recourse or notice (U.C.C. 1-308) http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Orion_Nebula_-_Hubble_2006_mosaic_18000.jpg

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Engineers developing pavement technologies to clear snow and ice from runways

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Alireza Sassani turned a switch and sent 60 volts of electricity into a small block of concrete. A

The post Engineers developing pavement technologies to clear snow and ice from runways has been published on Technology Org.

 
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Enlarged Region of The Omega Nebula Sticker

Here's a great sheet of stickers featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: stars, galaxies, astronomy, universe, outer space, envelope sealers, eroton, galaxies stars, gas clouds, star forming activity, green hydrogen, omega nebula m17, ultraviolet radiation, young massive stars, red sulpher, blue oxygen

Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series Like the fury of a raging sea, this bubbly ocean of glowing hydrogen, oxygen, and sulphur gas lies in the extremely massive and luminous molecular nebula Messier 17.
This Hubble photograph captures a small region within Messier 17 (M17), a hotbed of star formation. M17, also known as the Omega or Swan Nebula, is located about 5500 light-years away in the Sagittarius constellation.
Ultraviolet radiation is carving and heating the surfaces of cold hydrogen gas clouds and the warmed surfaces glow orange and red. The intense heat and pressure causes some material to stream away from the surface, creating the glowing veil of even hotter green-coloured gas that masks background structures. The colours in the image represent various gases. Red represents sulphur; green, hydrogen; and blue, oxygen.

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image code: eroton

Image credit: NASA, the ACS Science Team

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Carina Nebula Hubble Space Room Decal

Here's a great wall decal featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: carina nebula, nebula, astronomy, stars, nasa, mystic mountain, outer space, deep space, nature, cool astronomy, star formation, milky way, hh 901, hh 902, esa, universe, hubble telescope, hubble space telescope, hubble photo, cosmos, astronomical, cosmology, space, natural, science, space picture, space image, nebula picture, cool astronomy photo, cool space photo, nebula photo, nebula image

Hubble telescope photograph of the Carina Nebula

This photo of the Carina Nebula was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. It is reminiscent of a sci-fi/fantasy illustration, and shows an enormous mountainous pillar of dust and gas in rich orange tones, against a starlit deep blue background.

Credit: NASA, ESA, M. Livio and the Hubble 20th Anniversary Team (STScI)

You can personalise the design further if you'd prefer, such as by adding your name or other text, or adjusting the image - just click 'Customize it' to see all the options. IMPORTANT: If you choose a different sized version of the product, it's important to click Customize and check the image in the Design view to ensure it fills the area to the edge of the product, otherwise white edges may be visible.

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Star Birth in Constellation Cygnus, The Swan Wall Decor

Here's a great wall decal featuring a beautiful image from deep space


tagged with: star clusters, nebulae, gstlnrsr, rcw120, breathtaking astronomy images, star nurseries, inspirational stars, ionised gas clouds, galaxies, european southern observatory, eso, vista

Galaxies, Stars and Nebulae series A gorgeous star forming region in Constellation Cygnus (The Swan). This Hubble image shows a dust-rich, interstellar gas cloud with a new-born star in the centre of the hour-glass shape. The glowing blue of the hydrogen in this nebula is due to the jets being emitted from the forming star as dust falls into into it and this causes the heating and turbulence of the hydrogen. The star, known as S106 IR, is reaching the end of its birth and will soon enter the much quieter period of adulthood known as the main stage.

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Image code: cygsb

Image credit: NASA, the Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI) and ESA

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Hubble source catalog: One-stop shopping for astronomers

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Astronomers have created a new master catalog of astronomical objects called the Hubble Source Catalog. The catalog provides one-stop shopping for measurements of objects observed with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.

via Science Daily

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